Exploring the chemical composition, in vitro and in silico study of the anticandidal properties of annonaceae species essential oils from the Amazon

Chemical composition of the essential oils (EOs) from the leaves of five Annonaceae species found in the amazon region was analyzed by Gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. The antifungal activity of theses EOs was tested against Candida albicans, Candida auris, Candida famata, Candida krusei and Candida tropicalis. In addition, an in silico study of the molecular interactions was performed using molecular modeling approaches. Spathulenol (29.88%), α-pinene (15.73%), germacra-4(15),5,10(14)-trien-1-α-ol (6.65%), and caryophylene oxide (6.28%) where the major constitents from the EO of Anaxagorea dolichocarpa. The EO of Duguetia echinophora was characterized by β-phellanderene (24.55%), cryptone (12.43%), spathulenol (12.30%), and sabinene (7.54%). The major compounds of the EO of Guatteria scandens where β-pinene (46.71%), α-pinene (9.14%), bicyclogermacrene (9.33%), and E-caryophyllene (8.98%). The EO of Xylopia frutescens was characterized by α-pinene (40.12%) and β-pinene (36.46%). Spathulenol (13.8%), allo-aromadendrene epoxide (8.99%), thujopsan-2-α-ol (7.74%), and muurola-4,10(14)-dien-1-β-ol (7.14%) were the main chemical constituents reported in Xylopia emarginata EO. All EOs were active against the strains tested and the lowest inhibitory concentrations were observed for the EOs of D. echinophora, X. emarginata, and X. frutescens against C. famata the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration values of 0.07, 0.019 and 0.62 μL.mL-1, respectively. The fungicidal action was based on results of minimum fungicidal concentration and showed that the EOs showed fungicide activity against C. tropicalis (2.5 μL.mL-1), C. krusei (2.5 μL.mL-1) and C. auris (5 μL.mL-1), respectively. The computer simulation results indicated that the major compounds of the EOs can interact with molecular targets of Candida spp.

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Reviewer #1:
Some concerns: Why cytotoxic activity and selectivity index were not done or were not presented?
Answer: Unfortunately, our laboratory does not have the necessary resources (funders) to carry out the tests suggested by you, we are sorry for that.

Title
The term antimicrobial is too broad in this title as only Candida strains were used. I suggest changing from 'antimicrobial properties' to 'anticandidal properties'.
-Specify if all essential oil present same qualitative composition. What about quantity?
Answer: each plant species studied presented a concentration of essential oil, consequently the chemical composition in qualitative and quantitative terms varied, this can be observed more clearly in section 3. Results and Discussions 3.1 Chemical Composition and Yield of the Essential Oils, Table 1, thank you for your inquiry.
The fungicidal action was based on results of minimum fungicidal concentration and showed that the EOs showed fungicide activity against C. tropicalis (2.5 µL.mL -1 ), C. krusei (2.5 µL.mL -1 ) and C. auris (5 µL.mL -1 ), respectively. The computer simulation results indicated that the major compounds of the EOs can interact with molecular targets of Candida spp.

Antifungal Activity of the Essential Oils
Include program used to calculate the MIC values. Answer: The "energy threshold" has no unit of measurement.
Answer: The references have been changed and corrected with the help of the Mendeley App using the style provided by Plos One.

Reviewer #2:
The manuscript PONE-D-23-15730 entitled "Exploring the Chemical Composition, In Vitro and in Silico Study of the Antimicrobial Properties of Annonaceae Species Essential Oils from the Amazon" reports the composition of the essential oils (EOs) of several plants of the Annonaceae family and explored their potential interaction with the proteins Sterol 14α-Demethylase Cytochrome P450, as their molecular target using a molecular docking approach. The Knowledge added by the manuscript is qualified in the context of the antimicrobial activity of the tested EOs, but just include the molecular docking is not sufficient to improve the value of the study, more validation and exploitation on the use of these EOs is required to considerer this manuscript to be published.